Pouch-wad



Aug. 16, 1966 R. w. COMERFORD POUCH-WAD Original Filed June 25, 1962 FIG-2 FIG-I L59 FIG-5 FIG-4 INVENTOR.

RONALD W. COMERFORD Wa -1f 3,266,421 PGUCH-WAD Ronald W. Comerford, 11905 Milan Ave, Cleveland, Ohio 44111 Continuation of application Ser. No. 21155347, June 25, 1962. This application Apr. 23, 1965, Ser. No. 452,454

3 Claims. (Cl. 10242) This application is a continuation of application Serial No. 205,047, entitled, Pouch-Wad, filed June 25, 1962, now abandoned.

The present invention relates generally to ammunition and more specifically to shotgun cartridges.

Prior to the present invention the ballistic flight of the shot-gun pellets has been adversely affected by contact between many of the pellets and the interior of the shotgun barrel as the shot is discharged from the cartridge. Metal-to-metal contact between the pellets and the gun barrel both decelerates the pellets and deforms the pellets so that they lose their spherical shape. It has been found that between 30-40% of the pellets in a shot charge lose their spherical shape because of such contact with the gun barrel. The ballistic flight of the pellets which have contacted the walls of the barrel is erratic in comparison to that of the remaining pellets. Thi is true because (1) the affect on their flight caused by uneven shapes and (2) because the frictional contact of some of the pellets with the barrel walls has a braking effect on those pellets with the result that the muzzle velocities of the pellets vary. The variation in muzzle velocity of the pellets results in a variation of their trajectories and in their space-time relationship. This erratic flight of some of the pellets in the shot charge further causes an uneven shot pattern with the pellets tending to be bunched in some areas and extremely thin in other areas. The thinning out of areas of the shot pattern can and often does cause a marksman to miss a target, such as a clay pigeon. In competition shooting the contest can be won or lost on the failure to hit just one clay pigeon.

The present invention provides a composite cartridge so constructed as to assure a uniform shot pattern. The present invention in its preferred form provides a combination middle wad and shot-receiving pouch for use with the commercially available cartridges. This combination wad and pouch may be characteristically termed a pouch-wad. The pouch-wad comprises a cylindrical member sized to telescope into the discharge end of a composite cartridge case. The pouch-wad includes a wad portion which telescopes over a portion of the powder charge in the lower portion of the cartridge case. The rearwardmost section of the cylindrical member extends longitudinally and forms a tapered skirt. The tapered skirt is flexible and expands radially when the powder charge is ignited to prevent the escape of the explosion gases between the cartridge case and the pouch-wad. The remaining portion of the cylindrical member forms a pouch, or pocket, which holds the pellets of the shot charge. This pocket is open at its forward end for loading and discharging the shot charge.

When a shotgun cartridge utilizing the pouch-Wad of the invention is fired the pouch-wad containing the shot charge is discharged out the end of the cartridge case. The pouch-wad, still containing the shot charge, travels down the gun barrel toward the muzzle. The shot pouch portion of the cylindrical member is always interposed between the shot and the gun barrel to prevent any con- 3,266,421 Patented August 16, 1966 tact therebetween. When the pouch-wad emerges from the muzzle of the barrel the cylindrical wall of the shot pouch portion opens radially to permit the pellets to travel on free of the pouch-wad. Thus, the pouch-wad contains the pellets and protects them until they are free and clear of the gun barrel. As the pellets have no opportunity to contact the gun barrel, they retain their original spherical shape and their muzzle velocities are uniform. Because the pellets retain their spherical shape and common velocity, they have substantially identical ballistic flight characteristics and will provide a uniform shot pattern. Moreover, as the shot pellets never contact the inside of the gunbarrel, unwanted leading of the barrel is prevented.

The pouch-wad not only protects the pellets and the I gun barrel, but also the cartridge case as :well. The number of times a cartridge may be reloaded and reused normally depends on the life of the cartridge case. The shot charge when discharged from the cartrdige acts as an abrasive and shreads the inside of the cartridge case. In addition, the conventional fibrous wadding is made especially abrasive and sharp so that it will scrape away the lead deposited by the pellets on the inside of the gun barrel. The sharp surfaces of such wadding severely scrapes the inside of the cartrdige case as well. As a result of the scraping by both the pellets and the madding, conventional cartridges have at most a useful life of about three firings before the cartridge case is too thin or shreaded to be reused.

In the pouch-wad of the present invention the pouch is always interposed between the pellets and the cartridge case. Hence, the cartridge case never feels the abrasive effect of the pellets. Moreover, as the pouch-wad similarly protects the barrel, and is also a wad, the conventional Wadding material is not required. All these advantages result in a longer useful life for the cartridge.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved composite cartridge whereby the pellets of a shot charge are discharged from the cartridge and the associated gun barrel in a uniform shot pattern.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved composite cartridge whereby the pellets of the shot charge never contact the inside of the gun barrel when the cartridge is fired.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved composite cartridge whereby the pellets of the shot charge are contained and protected by a pouch as the shot travels down the gun barrel, but travel free of the pouch once they emerge from the barrel muzzle.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved composite cartridge having a middle wad which effectively seals against the escape of explosion gases between the wad and the inside of the cartridge case.

Other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the following description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a sectional view, in a longitudinal plane, of a composite cartridge utilizing a preferred form of the pouch-wad of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view, in a longitudinal plane, of another form of the pouch-wad of the invention;

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view, taken along line 33 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view, in a longitudinal plane, of a middle wad construction taught by the invention;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view, in a longitudinal plane, of a shot pouch construction taught by the invention; and

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view, in a longitudinal plane, of another form of the pouch-wad of the invention.

In the drawing there is shown in FIGURE 1 a composite cartridge utilizing a preferred form of the pouchwad of the invention. The composite cartridge is indicated generally by the reference character 11.

The composite cartridge 11 includes a cylindrical cartridge case 12 and a metal base 13. The metal base 13 includes a cylindrical portion 14, a transverse portion 15 covering the bottom end of the cylindrical portion and a primer-receiving opening 16 centrally located in the transverse portion 15. A circumferential rim 17 is provided at the juncture of the cylindrical portion 14 and the transverse portion 15 to retain the cartridge in the breech of the particular weapon in use and to provide an edge for ejecting the cartridge after use.

The cylindrical portion 14 of the metal base 13 surrounds the lower, or powder charge, portion of the cartridge case 12. The base 13 reinforces the portion of the cartridge case 12 containing the powder charge and also provides a surface or edge by means of which the cartridge is locked in the breech of a small arms weapon.

A basewad 20 is provided in the lower end of the cartridge case 12. A firing channel, or flash hole, 21 extends axially through the center of the basewad 20. The flash hole 21 opens into a powder charge-receiving cavity 22 of the basewad 20. A primer 23 is disposed in the primer-receiving opening 16 and extends axially into the flash hole 21. A powder charge 25 is provided in the powder charge cavity 22. The primer 23 ignites the powder charge 25 in the usual manner of a central-fire system.

A one-piece pouch-wed 27 is telescoped within the cartridge case 12 over the top of the powder charge 25. The pouch-wad 27 is made preferably of low density polyethylene. The pouch-wad 27 includes a wad portion 28 and a shot-receiving pouch, or pocket, portion 29. The wad portion 28 includes a cylindrical wall 30 and a base end wall 31. The cylindrical wall 36 extends longitudinally beyond the base end wall 31 and terminates in a tapered skirt 32. The tapered skirt 32 is very flexible and expands radially when the powder charge 25 is ignited to provide a seal between the wad portion 28 and the cartridge case 12. The seal provided by the skirt 32 prevents the escape, or blowby, of explosion gases between the pouch-wad 27 and the cartridge case 12.

The shot-receiving pouch portion 29 of the pouch-wad 27 includes a cylindrical wall 34. The internal diameter of the cylindrical pouch wall 34 is larger than the internal diameter of the cylindrical wad wall 30. A shoulder 35 is formed where the cylindrical wad wall 28 meets the cylindrical pouch wall 34. A disc 36 of paper or other suitable material is seated on the shoulder 35. The paper disc 36 functions as an end wall to separate the interior of the middle Wad portion from the shot-receiving portion 29. A shot charge of lead pellets 37 is provided in the shot-receiving portion 29. A set of elongated spoke members 38 assist the shoulder 35 in supporting the cardboard disc 36. The spoke members 38 extend radially from the longitudinal axis of the wad portion 28 and reinforce the pouch-wad.

The cylindrical pouch wall 34 is weakened or preferably split longitudinally in a plurality of locations 33 to permit the shot-receiving pouch to open up as it emerges from the muzzle of the barrel in which the cartridge is being used. The splits 33 divide the pouch wall 34 into a plurality of cylindrically contoured sections. In the preferred embodiment shown there are four splits 33 dividing the pouch wall 34 into four cylindrically contoured sections. The opening of the shot-receiving pouch In other words, as

may be likened to that of a flower.

the pouch-wad 27 emerges from the confines of a barrel l each cylindrically contoured section of the cylindrical pouch wall 34 is blown from its substantially longitudinally extending position to a somewhat radially extending position. i

The cylindrical pouch wall 34 tapers frusto-conically from a small diameter adjacent the middle wad portion 28 to a slightly larger diameter at its open end. The taper in the pouch wall 34 is readily apparent when the pouch-wad is separate from the cartridge case as, for example, in FIGURE 2 which shows another form of the pouch-wad 27. The function of the taper is to assure that the sections of the cylindrical pouch wall 34 will be blown radially outward as the pouch-wad emerges from the barrel muzzle.

A second form of the pouch-wad of the invention is indicated generally by the reference character 40 in FIG. 2. The pouch-wad 40 includes a shot-receiving portion 41 and a wad portion 42. The cylindrical wall of the shot-receiving portion 41 is tapered and split at into sections the same as the pouch-wad 27. The wad portion 42, however, includes a middle wall member 43 dividing the shot-receiving portion 41 from the interior of the wad portion 42. A set of elongated spoke members 44 and a disc 36 reinforce and enclose the lower end of the wad portion 42.

FIGURES 4 and 5 show a two-piece middle wad and shot pouch construction. The middle wad 49 shown in FIG. 4 may be used with or without the shot pouch 50 shown in FIG. 5. The middle wad 49 includes a cylindrical wall 51, a base end wall 52, and a longitudinally extending tapered skirt portion 54. The internal cavity defined by the cylindrical wall member 51 is enclosed at its forward end by a disc 55 resting on radially extending spoke members 56. The middle wad 49 is substantially identical to the wad portion 28 of the pouch-wad 27 shown in FIG. l.

The shot pouch 56' shown in FIG. 5 includes a cylindrical side wall 53 and an end wall 59. The cylindrical side wall 53 is split at 57 into a plurality of sections. The shot pouch 50 may be used in conjunction with the middle wad 49 or with any other wadding used in composite cartridges.

In FIG. 6, another form of the pouch-wad of the invention is indicated generally by the reference character 60. The pouch-wad 60 includes a cylindrical side wall 61 and a base end wall 6 2. The cylindrical side wall 61 extends rearwardly past the end wall 62 and forms a tapered skirt 63. The tapered skirt 63 is identical in function to the tapered skirt 32 of pouch-wad 27. The cylinder wall 61 is slotted in a plurality of places 64 to provide a plurality of cylinder sections. When telescoped inside of a cartridge the lower portion of the pouch-wad 60 is filled with a wadding material 65. The remainder of the cylindrical cavity defined by the cylinder wall 61 is filled with a suitable projectile, such as pellets 66.

An advantage of the pouch-wad is its reusable characteristic. It is preferably made of a plastic and does not disintegrate when discharged from the cartridge. Another advantage is that the pouch-wad is readily recoverable after use. Facile recovery of the pouch-wad is provided by the flower-like manner in which the cylindrical pouch wall opens after it leaves the barrel. In other words, the radially extended sections of the pouch wall slow down the pouch-wad so that it falls to the ground in the immediate vicinity of the person firing the gun.

Still another advantage is provided by the cylindrical pouch wall when the discharge end of the cartridge case is crimped or folded over. The forward, or discharge, end of the cylindrical pouch wall acts as a form so that the end of the cartridge case, when folded or crimped, is perfectly round and not irregularly shaped. Finally, the pouch-wad eliminates the two or three piece column wads normally required to provide an effective seal over the powder charge.

In summary, the invention may be briefly described as comprising essentially a composite cartridge having a powder charge, a middle wad portion, and a shot-receiving portion; a pouch-wad telescoped in the middle wad and the powder charge portions over the powder charge; the pouch-wad including means to seal against the blow-by of explosion gases, and the pouch-wad having a shotreceiving pocket to contain and protect the shot charge until clear of the gun barrel in which the cartridge is used.

Although the invention has been described in its preferred form. with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred form has been made only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

1 claim:

1. A pouch-wad device comprising:

(a) a tubular member having forward and rearward ends;

(b) a shot charge retaining wall being integral with said tubular member and extending transversely within said tubular member spaced from said forward and rearward ends, the portion of the tubular member between said shot retaining wall and the forward end defining a shot charge pouch with said shot charge retaining wall;

(c) a support and spacing structure integral with said shot charge retaining wall, said support and spacing structure extending rearwardly from said shot retaining wall toward the rearward end of said tubular member;

(d) an obturating wall piece separate from the tubular member and extending transversely across the rearward end of the tubular member;

(e) the rearward end of the tubular member including means for receiving said obturating wall piece so as to define an obturating portion for the pouch-wad device, said obturating wall piece as received being abuttable against the spacing and support structure so that said spacing and support structure maintains said obturating wall piece spaced from said shot retaining wall;

(f) the portion of the tubular member forward of the shot retaining wall being longitudinally weakened in a plurality of perimetrically spaced locations to provide a plurality of tubular wall sections joined adjacent their rearward ends and movable at their forward ends when the wall sections separate at the weakened locations; and,

(g) said spacing and support structure occupying a total space which is substantially less than the space between said shot retaining wall and said obturating wall piece so as to provide a very light-weight pouchwad having a minimum mass and very small inertia which inertia when the pouch-wad is moving will be overcome by the atmospheric resistance of the wall sections when the wall sections separate at the weakened locations and are blown from longitudinally extending positions to generally radially outwardly projecting positions upon emergence from the confines of a barrel.

2. A pouch-wad device comprising:

(a) a tubular member having forward and rearward ends;

(b) a shot charge retaining wall means being integral with said tubular member and extending transversely within said tubular member spaced from said forward and rearward ends, the portion of the the tubular member between said shot retaining wall means and the forward end defining a shot charge pouch with said shot charge retaining wall means;

(c) an obturating wall means separate from the tubular member and extending transversely across the rearward end of the tubular member;

(d) the rearward end of the tubular member including means for receiving said obturating wall means so as to define an obturating portion for the pouch wad device;

(e) a support and spacing structure extending rearwardly from said shot retaining wall means to said obturating wall means, said support and spacing structure being integral with one of said walls and abuttable against the other of said walls and maintaining said obturating wall means spaced from said shot retaining wall means;

(f) the portion of the tubular member forward of the shot retaining wall means being longitudinally weakened in a plurality of perimetrically spaced locations to provide a plurality of tubular wall sections joined adjacent their rearward ends and movable at their forward ends when the Wall sections separate at the weakened location; and,

(g) said spacing and support structure occupying a total space which is substantially less than the space between said shot retaining wall means and said obturating wall means so as to provide a very lightweight pouch-wad having a minimum mass and .a very small inertia which inertia when the pouch-wad is moving will be overcome by the atmospheric resistance of the wall sections when the wall sections separate at the weakened locations and are blown from longitudinally extending positions to gene-rally radially outwardly projecting positions upon emergence from the confines of a barrel.

3. A pouch-wad device for use in a cartridge case containing a shot charge and a propellant charge, comprising a unitary structure made substantially of'a resinous, plastic material and including:

(a) an obturating wall for confronting the propellant charge;

(b) a shot retaining wall longitudinally spaced from the obturating wall to form a retaining shelf for the shot charge;

(c) support means interposed between said obturating and shot retaining walls and being integrally formed in one piece with at least one of said walls, said support means being configured to define a central supporting portion for said walls and at least one air cell between said walls;

(d) elongated tubular wall means extending forwardly from the shot retaining wall to surround the shot charge substantially and being integrally formed in one piece with said shot retaining Wall to form a shot retaining pouch;

(e) means interconnecting said tubular wall means and said support means and being integrally formed in one piece with said tubular wall means and said support means;

(f) said tubular wall means being longitudinally weakened in a plurailty of perimetrically spaced locations to provide a plurality of tubular wall sections joined at their rearward ends and free to move at their forward ends so that when the pouch-wad device is propelled from a cartridge case through a barrel by an ignited propellant charge and released from the confines of the barrel, the tubular wall sections are caused to separate by reason of their atmospheric resistance and move from longitudinally extending positions to generally radially outward projecting positions to release the shot charge and readily retard movement of said support means through their integral connections to said support means.

(References on following page) 7 8 References Cited by the Examiner 747,963 4/ 1933 France. I D ATE PATENTS 1,163,832 5/1958 France. UN TE ST S 1,186,659 2/1959 France. 1 2,986,998 6/1961 Clark 102-95 X 1,255,993 2/1961 France.

5 3,099,958 8/1963 Daubenspeck et a1. 102-42 1 O G PATENTS BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner.

747,131 3/1933 France. R. F. STAHL, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A POUCH-WAD DEVICE COMPRISING: (A) A TUBULAR MEMBER HAVING FORWARD AND REARWARD ENDS; (B) A SHOT CHARGE RETAINING WALL BEING INTEGRAL WITH SAID TUBULAR MEMBER AND EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY WITHIN SAID TUBULAR MEMBER SPACED FROM SAID FORWARD AND REARWARD ENDS, THE PORTION OF THE TUBULAR MEMBER BETWEEN SAID SHOT RETAINING WALL AND THE FORWARD END DEFINING A SHOT CHARGE POUCH WITH SAID SHOT CHARGE RETAINING WALL; (C) A SUPPORT AND SPACING STRUCTURE INTEGRAL WITH SAID SHOT CHARGE RETAINING WALL, SAID SUPPORT AND SPACING STRUCTURE EXTENDING REARWARD END OF SAID TUBULAR ING WALL TOWARD THE REARWARD END OF SAID TUBULAR MEMBER; (D) AN OBTURATING WALL PIECE SEPARATE FROM THE TUBULAR MEMBER AND EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY ACROSS THE REARWARD END OF THE TUBULAR MEMBER; (E) THE REARWARD END OF THE TUBULAR MEMBER INCLUDING MEANS FOR RECEIVING SAID OBTURATING WALL PIECE SO AS TO DEFINE AN OBTURATING PORTION FOR THE POUCH-WAD DEVICE, SAID OBTURATING WALL PIECE SO AS ABUTTABLE AGAINST THE SPACING AND SUPPORT STRUCTURE SO THAT SAID SPACING AND SUPPORT STRUCTURE MAINTAINS SAID OBTURATING WALL PIECE SPACED FROM SAID SHOT RETAINING WALL; (F) THE PORTION OF THE TUBULAR MEMBER FORWARD OF THE SHOT RETAINING WALL BEING LONGITUDINALLY WEAKENED IN A PLURALITY OF PERIMETRICALLY SPACED LOCATIONS TO PROVIDE A PLURALITY OF TUBULAR WALL SECTIONS JOINED ADJACENT THEIR REARWARD ENDS AND MOVEABLE AT THEIR FORWARD ENDS WHEN THE WALL SECTIONS SEPARATE AT THE WEAKENED LOCATIONS; AND (G) SAID SPACING AND SUPPORT STRUCTURE OCCUPYING A TOTAL SPACE WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY LESS THAN THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID SHOT RETAINING WALL AND SAID OBTURATING WALL PIECE SO AS TO PROVIDE A VERY LIGHT-WEIGHT POUCHWAD HAVING A MINIMUM MASS AND VERY SMALL INERTIA WHICH INERTIA WHEN THE POUCH-WAD IS MOVING WILL BE OVERCOME BY THE ATMOSPHERIC RESISTANCE OF THE WALL SECTIONS WHEN THE WALL SECTIONS SEPARATE AT THE WEAKENED LOCATIONS AND ARE BLOWN FROM LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING POSITIONS TO GENERALLY RADIALLY OUTWARDLY PROJECTING POSITIONS UPON EMERGENCE FROM THE CONFINES OF A BARREL. 